Pages of Time
Chapter 1: The Meeting Before Apocalyptic Chaos
I sigh as I look over the screen in the dark. Five hours of looking at these useless statistics, all I can see now are jumbled numbers on screen. Kenny's voice is like a buzzing in my ear, monotonous, tedious, repetitive and annoying. He's been getting all hyper and jumpy. He's dissatisfied by all we've accomplished in these past five years. He says we've made little progress, gotten into more trouble and wasted more money, then achieved anything, and the sole reason for which is that we all are persistent to behave as children.
Right, sure, and I'm dissatisfied by the fact I had to fly all the way from Russia to listen to this; also very dissatisfied, by the fact that I have to sit between Hiromi and Tyson.
I can see that the others are just as fed up as I am. Hiromi is giving Kenny death glares, but still listening to every word with interest, she also seems to be at times glaring at everyone else for not having enough will power to suffer inhumane torture like her, when there is no need to, just because it's the principal of the thing.
Tala is staring at the screen with glazed eyes. I can bet his mind is somewhere far from this room, probably at a strip club.
Miriam is still leaning against the wall after an hour of having told us to get our asses out of the building, she has to lock up. See, the HQ of our little organization is the top floor of the BBA which is clearly a huge pain in the ass for Miriam. She has managed to step in Mr. Dickenson's shoes very well. Not that anyone could take the old man's place, I can never forget all he had done for me and the other Blitzkrieg Boys.
Tyson and Daichi are sleeping. I can see the drool on the table. I sigh yet again, how has anyone not snapped at chief yet? Enrique is texting someone, probably a slut. Salima and Emily are texting, each other, by the looks of it, probably can't find anyone awake since it's nearly midnight! Max is either doodling or playing tick tack toe, can't really make out in the dark.
Ming Ming is, uh, she is having Brooklyn file her nails. Okay, resist urge to slam head on wall. Why did the two of them join? Yes, they wanted revenge on people like Boris. Well, Brooklyn did anyways. Who knows about the pop bitch….I suppress a chuckle as I think of Hiromi's name for Ming Ming.
Okay hold up; have to get Hiromi out of my mind. Not that it's completely possible since we meet every once in a while, talk on the phone every day; I usually get up to her phone call and go to sleep with hers only despite living continents apart, for all I know, we could be still living in the dojo together for how much time we spend listening to each other's bitching. It's been ages since we were close friends, now it's more about bitching on each other and getting our work done, and the occasional heart to heart moving conversation which again ends with one of us insulting the other.
All of this doesn't mean that I have to think of her all the time. Why can't I stop thinking about her? Right now, there was no point of thinking of her, sure she's next to me, and it was her nickname I was using, but still. But her words and time I spend with her seem to terrorize my brain every waking second, and often the ones in which I'm unawake too.
Ian's two cent on the case is that Hiromi is like a virus that has infected the hard drive of my mind since we met almost ten years ago. And that no anti virus program in the world is capable of removing it. The only way to get rid of her is to get rid of my hard drive. The tech geek has some nerves!
Preposterous, the only problem is that I have to keep contact with her all the time. Other than that I barely think of her. Then there is the problem that she is one of the few sane friends I have, so when I am in public I have to talk to her. Talking to anyone else would just lead me to honestly hurting someone. Despite the fact that our conversations are not often filled with anything, but mocking, sarcasm and insults.
Speaking of the little midget, he's thumb wrestling with Bryan and from the outrageous gestures that Bryan seems to be making, it seems that the twerp is winning.
After the fourth world championships two years after BEGA Hiromi did not take my coming back to stay with the team, but still blading with the Blitzkrieg Boys in the fourth tournament lightly. She was mad and refused to talk to me at first, but since she couldn't make that work our conversations resorted to what they are now.
I cringe as I think of our past arguments. Of course, she notices this, and looks up at me like I am a psychopath then continues listening to Kenny's ranting with a sour look on her face and her maroon eyes narrowed in anger.
I sigh and take a sip of my coffee. I would like things to get back to the way they with her, it was nice talking to her, she wasn't judgmental and she actually cared, oh sure, she still isn't judgmental and she still cares, probably as much as I do, but now all of that is laced with a thick layer of contempt, scorn and mocking.
Jim is working away on his laptop, Kenny is too engrossed to even notice something as patent as that.
If you ask my opinion the unlikeliest people joined this organization. Speaking of which hearing Kenny go on and on, about things like the Tala's brawl with a police officer last week, reminds me why is he the head of this organization? When he wasn't even the founder?
Oh yes, I would have the brunette next to me to thank for that. Since it was in one of our late night talks that we mused about starting an organization to shut down people like my grand father and Boris, when I actually decided to actually get working on that plan when I was able enough, as in when I inherited Hiwatari Enterprises after Voltaire's death she was the first one I turned to. After much turning a deaf year to me and ignoring me like every time I came back from Russia and lectures I only listened to because I like her voice, I mean because I wanted to get on her good side, she agreed to help me.
We talked to Ray, Max, Tyson, Daichi and chief who were luckily across the hall they were in. Tyson was the jack ass to point out that we would need an in-charge; Daichi would be the idiot who said it should be either Hiromi or me, and Max was the pin brain who said we should both be in-charge. And when all three of them shut up, I had a death glaring Hiromi in front of me with her arms folded. Ray suggested that someone with brains should be in-charge, making Kenny the perfect man for the job.
His actual intentions were probably, that if Hiromi and I were in-charge together because we were now worst with our bickering than her and Tyson, so we'd probably get nothing done; and that we would abuse our power and exhibit tyrannical behavior. Like chief here was better than us. Right! And if had gotten down to voting between us, someone would have died. I doubt if I'd killed Hiromi even if she had won, but I would have seriously harmed those who'd have voted for her.
So, if she would have backed out, I would have been in charge and none of us would be listening to Hiromi. This is all her fault. Wait in God's name would I want to be in charge of this pack of hormonal, kiddy idiots. I don't want Hiromi to be either, she was not going to be the boss of me, nor would I want her to have the satisfaction that she might have beat me. Okay, so Kenny was the right choice, maybe that's why I agreed to agree with the others in the first place. Wait… was Ray actually implying that Hiromi and I lack brains. Never mind. I am not brooding on that.
None of us blade professionally anymore, of course I do still train with Dranzer, and Tyson and I still have our all out battles whenever I come to Japan, which is quite often.
Who else is here? Oh yeah, probably everyone since Kenny would pull out the insides of anyone who'd have not come, and fed it to them. Oh dear God, why did I get caught up between these people.
Oh yes, Queen, she seems to playing a video game that Joseph, who is balancing a pencil on his nose right now, apparently leant to her. Raul is reading a book in the little light that is available here. Miguel is trying to listen to whatever the chief is saying, but his eyes keep falling from sleep, and probably boredom.
Another hour passes with the same mind numbing speech and me having finally laid my head down on the table, when suddenly someone slams their fist on the table. I notice that the sound came from very close to my left, oh boy, Hiromi. I lift my head up and stretch my hands. I can see her outline standing now, her hands gripping the edge of the table.
Miriam being closest to the light switch turns all the lights on.
"This is it!" Hiromi yells, slamming her fist on the table.
I flinch; her voice can be painful when she's angry. I feel sleepy, I look up at her with half lidded eyes, and she glares at me in response.
"Hiromi," Kenny says into the mike. "You ruined my train of -"
Hiromi interrupts him and begins her own rant. "What train of thoughts? You are just ranting about stupid statistics! And petty accidents that have happened in a long course of five years, more than fourteen hundred and sixty days! I can't believe I missed my college class for this. You called us from each corner of the globe. Why Kenny, what made you do it? And the rest of you!" She pauses to accusingly point at everyone. "No one even listens to the poor guy, okay so these stats are beyond, beyond boring, more boring than listening to Tyson rant about how great of a blader he is, but the least you could do is listen to him in the spirit of this organization. Speaking of Tyson."
Hiromi turns around to look at the former world champion sleeping away and Daichi next to him. Oh this is going to be painful, for them, not for me, highly amusing for me. She leans towards my side of the table, slams her fists on the it very close to both their heads.
Daichi is the first to get up, sputtering and trying to adjust his eyes to the surrounding. Tyson wakes up a few seconds after, moves his head around still shocked, and starts speaking, "I totally agree with whatever Hiromi says, definitely, and Kai, he's right too, I was about to say the same thing." Tyson finishes and looks around him helplessly for support.
I hear crickets chirping in response and the sound of the filer rubbing against the Pop Bitch's nails. The veins in Hiromi's hands and necks are quite visible. She's flexing her hands as if she's going to attack, even at this age she is as violent and rash as she was nine years ago.
"Don't hurt me." Tyson begs, covering his face with his hands.
"Coward," I cough out.
Hiromi turns to glare at me, and I give her one of my cheeriest smiles, the ones that can make hell freeze twice over. She doesn't react. I guess those spawned in hell suffer little effect.
She turns back to Kenny. "And honestly, Kenny, if you call us one more time for something like this…."
She continues like this for about fifteen minutes until Kenny is at the point of promising never ever to hold a meeting without consulting her, in midst of it Tyson tells me about five times how much he loves it when Hiromi yells at someone other than him, an then she stops. Huffs and sits back on her chair, looks at me and gives me a glare, then goes onto glaring at the ceiling.
Kenny adjourns the meeting, telling everyone to be back tomorrow at nine sharp for their assignments, and starts packing his stuff.; eager to disappear before people try to chop him up. People start getting up, yawning, and make their way to the exit. Kenny is the first one ready to leave.
Miriam who is beyond pissed, and with good reason too, walks on over to Hiromi, she sighs, "I was gonna rope Kenny, but he bailed. I am not closing up. Now that I know that my building has survived this meeting, you, you lock up!"
Hiromi resigns and takes the keys from the blunettes extended hand, who stomps off grabbing Max's hand and drags him with her. We were one of the few people that are still left in the room. Hiromi turns around to look at me. It's cruel how the devil-ish face can be transformed so quickly to look so innocent. I am roped. No point in arguing.
"C'mon," I say getting up. "Let's get this over and done with."
"I owe you nothing; I never asked for your help, Hiwatari, you offered it." Hiromi says getting up, ignoring my extended hand. "Keep that in mind. Now c'mon, let's get this done."
She pushes the chair in and makes her way towards the door. I look up at the ceiling and shake my head. This is going to be a long night.
AN: I can't believe I'm starting another damned multi chaptered fic. O.O, fabulous. Hope everyone liked it. This has been going on in my mind since last day of last year's summer vacation. :P
Please, R and R.
This one is gonna a have a long list of Thank you-s I've been avoiding for so long. But it's been mean of me, so here I go:
PS: I love you, thank you to Ms. Iqbal, Giulietta Marescotti, Anime Onnanoko, AquilaTempestas Dead-bY-n0w, Tyhiltwilover, Ms. Controversy, cOOlzanimeaDDict, Kawaii-Chibi-Kai and sky d for reviewing it.
Bah! Humbug!, thank you to tyhiltwilover, Kawaii-Chibi-Kai, Ms. Controversy, sky d and Dead-bY-n0w for reviewing it.
Want Ads!, thank you to Ms. Iqbal tyhiltwilover, Moonlight Serenity, Kawaii-Chibi-Kai, Hitomix, Kiray Himawari and Dead-bY-n0w for reviewing it.
Laughter, thank you to Dead-bY-n0w, Moonlight Serenity, AquilaTempestas and Kawaii-Chibi-Kai for reviewing it.
Year of 2003, thank you to Ms. Iqbal, AquilaTempestas, Tyhiltwilover, sky d, Kawaii-Chibi-Kai and Dead-by-n0w for reviewing it.
Bitter Sweet Win, thank you to Kawaii-Chibi-Kai, shiks and Moonlight Serenity for reviewing it. =D
Even Fly, thank you to tyhiltwilover, Christopher Scott, Dead-bY-n0w, Rosa Cotton, RennFlight, and Kawaii-Chibi-Kai for reviewing it.
Broken Promise, Ms. Iqbal, Dead-bY-n0w, sky d, Tyhiltwilover, Kawaii-Chibi-Kai and AquilaTempestas, thank you for reviewing it.
Miss. Iqbal, thank you for reviewing a lot of other things too. And dude, please make an account, it won't kill you. :P
Thank you to all those who people read and faved these fics, you guys are all awesome. And anyone who read faved or reviewed any of the old stories.
Now that's a load off my chest. Whew.
Disclaimer: I own nothing. I'm tired of writing this.
12:17 27th April, 2012.